Fan control on Linux for Linux/Windows Dual Boot with Helios 300

hendrik91 · March 2020

I have set up my Acer Predator Helios 300 laptop with a Windows/Linux Dual Boot. Everything works fine, however one aspect massively bothers me. It does not seem like there is any way to control the fan speed from Linux (I have tried on Ubuntu and various Manjaro versions). The only "trick" is to change the fan speeds on Windows (e.g. to max) with the pre-installed PredatorSense App, and then boot into Linux where the (e.g. max) fan speed will be kept. This does not seem like a good solution. Unfortunately, there is no PredatorSense app for Linux.

Therefore, I'd like to ask this community:

1. Is there any way to work around this issue? Is there any way to unlock the fan controls for other operating systems, in particular Linux?
2. Has anyone been able to control fan speeds on Linux with a different Acer laptop (than Acer Predator Helios 300)?

Many thanks in advance for any advice! It would be greatly appreciated.

VishwaR · April 2020

Hi I just installed Ubuntu on my Helios 300. Automatic fan control works fine for me. I tried putting some load on the processor and I could hear fans start to work harder emitting more noise. Also I installed a software called "Hardware Sensors Indicator" but unfortunately it can only monitor CPU temps of this machine at the moment. But temps are looking good (screenshot). Installed Ubuntu version is 18.04 LTS and fans were being controlled even from the live cd (Try without installing).

Image: https://us.v-cdn.net/6029997/uploads/editor/qa/sfxxmrrp3mnu.png

P.S.
1. No RGB on KB only default blue (you might want to find an app to control)

2. Turbo mode does not work

VishwaR · April 2020

====UPDATE====
After installing updates things are getting bad.
Idle temp is around 50 degrees and fans are being noisy.
But still I tried to work for sometime, nothing heavy installing some apps but after an hour or so the right side of the keyboard has become so warm to touch. Clearly there's something wrong.

VishwaR · April 2020

Alright,

First, make sure your Nvidia drivers up to date

Go to software updater -> settings -> additional drivers and select the latest driver

Image: https://us.v-cdn.net/6029997/uploads/editor/kp/6ensa42hvnjf.png

Restart your computer and then in the terminal nvidia-settings. It will open up the Nvidia settings GUI. You can monitor the temp levels here.

Image: https://us.v-cdn.net/6029997/uploads/editor/dz/lddl3w61wmc4.png

Or you can switch to Intel graphics

Image: https://us.v-cdn.net/6029997/uploads/editor/5b/w4908v2tlhd3.png

Optional - Use Psensor (with Sensors) to monitor temps

Image: https://us.v-cdn.net/6029997/uploads/editor/op/vjm26cvvirks.png

Notes:

I did not have to do any tweaks to control the temps. After switching to Nvidia graphics driver my temps looked fine and fan speeds were normal (could not find a tool to detect and monitor fan speeds I used my ears ).
If you are using sensors to monitor your temps, don't bother scanning the Nvidia GPU. Use it only for CPU temps then use a GUI tool like Psensor to monitor. It will automatically pickup GPU temps from Nvidia driver.
If you switch to Intel graphics, Nvidia settings will no longer be available and I could not find a proper tool to monitor Intel GPU temps yet (intel-gpu-tools did not help).

batmalin · April 2020

Unfortunately Acer has disabled the thermal fan control in bios and the fan sensor is not visible (enabled) for use except for their onw software like NitroSense and PredatorSense. The only sw that clams to work is https://github.com/hirschmann/nbfc
You have to try if and to see which fan profile works best for you.
Please click yes if I have answered your question.

Err0rX · December 2020

Hey There I Recently Created A Config(nbfc) File For Acer Predator Helios 300(RTX 2060) And This Working For Me Flawlessly
Hope It Will Also Work For You
https://github.com/hirschmann/nbfc/pull/1039/files#diff-50ddd4e9ba6abe03c49bc65914eb62a60b506a5ce12e46df5857e012a7584390

batmalin · December 2020

Nice mate!

ダージリン様 · December 2020

Err0rX said:

Hey There I Recently Created A Config(nbfc) File For Acer Predator Helios 300(RTX 2060) And This Working For Me Flawlessly
Hope It Will Also Work For You
https://github.com/hirschmann/nbfc/pull/1039/files#diff-50ddd4e9ba6abe03c49bc65914eb62a60b506a5ce12e46df5857e012a7584390

why i can enable Nbfc, tried ur config, but it keeps disabling

batmalin · December 2020

When you copy the config check if it has the first line which begins with @ and if so delete it and save it and try again.

ダージリン様 · December 2020

Image: https://us.v-cdn.net/6029997/uploads/editor/23/s3acwqh927gv.png

just checked my config, it doesnt have @ in it

batmalin · December 2020

Are the rest of the configs working?

ダージリン様 · December 2020

batmalin said:

Are the rest of the configs working?

in config editor it looks fine, when I applied the config, its just keep disabled

Image: https://us.v-cdn.net/6029997/uploads/editor/bp/wz9458wdzko6.png

batmalin · December 2020

Try other config.

ダージリン様 · December 2020

still the same

batmalin · December 2020

Can you put it in the read only mode and check if it reads the T and the speeds?

ダージリン様 · December 2020

batmalin said:

Can you put it in the read only mode and check if it reads the T and the speeds?

yes, it shows 0c

batmalin · December 2020

Something went wrong with the installation. Try to reinstall.

JafarAkhondali · August 2021

Hi, I've implemented turbo mode support and RGB dynamic effects for Linux here:

https://github.com/JafarAkhondali/acer-predator-turbo-and-rgb-keyboard-linux-module

Give it a try (at your own risk), and if it worked(or not) for you, kindly please drop an issue.

batmalin · August 2021

Great! Thanks a lot mate!

smoljanovic · December 2021

There are 2 GiftHub pages that solve some of those issues. I now have RGB lights for keyboard and Turbo control using button on Acer Predator 315-15. See - https://github.com/JafarAkhondali/acer-predator-turbo-and-rgb-keyboard-linux-module and https://github.com/kphanipavan/PredatorNonSense

batmalin · December 2021

Native linux NBFC client here - https://github.com/nbfc-linux/nbfc-linux

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